Sept. 19: The Apples in Stereo, Live in Concert on NPR
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Hear the Neo-Psychedelic Pop Group in Concert, Online
New Magnetic Wonder
The Apples in Stereo's latest CD is New Magnetic Wonder.
NPR.org,
September 14, 2007 · The Apples in Stereo first emerged in the early
'90s as part of the Elephant 6 collective, a group of musicians with a
shared love of lo-fi, neo-psychedelic rock. Fifteen years later, the
collective has disbanded, and flagship bands like Olivia Tremor Control
and Neutral Milk Hotel have stopped releasing new work. But The Apples
in Stereo's members play on, returning with one of 2007's most inspired
and ambitious recordings. The band will showcase selections from New
Magnetic Wonder in a full concert, webcast live on NPR.org Sept. 19.
The performance from Washington, D.C.'s 9:30 Club will begin at
approximately 10 p.m. ET.
With two dozen trippy, fuzzed-out
tracks, New Magnetic Wonder offers a brightly colored romp through
swirling sonic landscapes. Half of its songs are full-length
psychedelic rock and power-pop gems, while the other half consist of
shorter, experimental segues between tunes. The Apples in Stereo's
members returned to some of their earlier recording techniques for the
album, including handheld analog tape machines. Frontman Robert
Schneider says some of the songs were "recorded live into a single
microphone, just the way we used to do it in high school. Then we added
10 tracks of us laughing and singing and just goofing off."
New
Magnetic Wonder is The Apples in Stereo's first new album in five
years, and Schneider says it wasn't easy putting it together.
"Finishing this record took every joule of energy I had," he says.
"There were so many different sounds and ideas bouncing around in my
head, and such strong feelings to get across. This time, I wanted to
make a record that really meant something, that felt life-affirming and
real."
Obsessed with mathematics, Schneider sought to break new
ground with New Magnetic Wonder by inventing a new scale, calling it
the "Non-Pythagorean Music Scale." Using what he calls "mathematical
equations based on the properties of natural logarithms," Schneider
replaced the standard 12-tone scale with "a completely new set of
frequencies (which) add according to a different algebra from the
traditional, rational pitches. Music theory in this scale has not yet
been worked out."
The Apples in Stereo formed in 1993 in Denver,
Colo., later relocating with other Elephant 6 artists to Athens, Ga.
Along with founder Robert Schneider, the group now features
long-standing members John Hill (rhythm guitar) and Eric Allen (bass),
as well as new additions Bill Doss (keyboards) and John Dufilho (drums).
